• The Lib Dems may have been mean about the wicked Tories at their Birmingham conference. But the wicked Tories are killing their coalition partners with kindness in Manchester. Senior ministers from David Cameron down have used speeches and interviews to praise their stimulating inter-party discussions and call Nick, Danny and Vince (they draw the line at Chris Huhne) not just colleagues, but friends. Can it last? George Osborne allowed himself a sly dig when he reminded supporters that, back in 1875, Liberal MPs opposed the Tory bill that stopped children being sent up chimneys. Another joke doing the conference rounds is that "the Liberals used to shoot your dog, now they steal your cat" – a double dig in that it combines Jeremy Thorpe MP's conspiracy to murder trial in 1979 with this month's news that a Lib Dem MP's wife stole his mistress's moggie. And whose joke is that? Blogger Mark Wallace claims it's Cameron's own. But only in private.

• A mini-crime wave at the Radisson Edwardian hotel, much favoured by thirsty delegates, has seen a clutch of customers leaving without paying for their food or drink. As at most respectable conferences, journalists and delegates blame each other.

• The faltering economy, the eurozone crisis, Colonel Gaddafi's whereabouts: such great issues do not exclusively dominate the prime minister's restless mind. Pressing the flesh among party activists in the crowded bar of Manchester's Midland hotel on Sunday night, a shirt-sleeved David Cameron sidled up to cartoonist Steve Bell. Patting the Gillray of the Guardian firmly on the arm in manly Bullingdon Club fashion, he asked: "When are you going to get that damned condom off my head?" It is not the first time the PM has shown sensitivity to Bell's portrayal of him inside a condom. Last time he lobbied, the cartoonist felt obliged to keep doing it. This time Bell feebly mumbled: "It's too late."

• Eric Pickles and his wife came into the conference hall to hear George Osborne's speech. Standing in the wings, they were asked to take seats by staff who warned the communities secretary of safety regulations and fire hazards. Bad move. The doughty champion of localism told them to shove off.

• Margaret Thatcher's name still raises a cheer here, even though it was her EU legislation that let in all those Polish plumbers. Her old rival, Shirley Williams, fares less well as the leftie peer who threatens to block Andrew Lansley's health bill in the Lords. It remains a little-known fact that back in 1979 on the night she became prime minister Thatcher devoted a huge chunk of her acceptance speech in Finchley Town Hall to a personal attack on Williams. She denounced her as a meddling, privileged silver spoon socialist who went on picket lines. Those were the days.

• No fewer than 300 Scottish Tories ("more than vote Tory in Scotland") packed a conference fringe to hear the four candidates vying to succeed lovable Annabel Goldie as their leader in Holyrood. Actually the party has 8,500 members north of the border, but half are over 80. Jack Carlaw is the grannies' favourite over Ruth Davidson, Murdoch Fraser (Goldie's no 2) and Margaret Mitchell. Fraser should have walked it until he came up with the bright idea of rebranding McTories as the Caledonia party to take on Alex Salmond. A pointless move, says Carlaw, since voters "would still call us ****ing Tories".